Senate Bill 2157

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 41-21-201, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE AND DIRECT THE STATE BOARD OF HEALTH TO INCLUDE SCREENING FOR EARLY INFANTILE KRABBE DISEASE (EIKD) IN ITS COMPREHENSIVE NEWBORN SCREENING PROGRAM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 41-21-201, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

41-21-201. (1) The State Department of Health shall establish, maintain and carry out a comprehensive newborn screening program designed to detect hypothyroidism, phenylketonuria (PKU), hemoglobinopathy, congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), galactosemia, Early Infantile Krabbe Disease (EIKD), and such other conditions as specified by the State Board of Health and as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. The State Board of Health shall adopt any rules and regulations necessary to accomplish the program.

(2) The State Board of Health shall determine and specify the conditions that will be included in the comprehensive newborn screening program in addition to those conditions named in subsection (1) of this section, upon the advice and recommendations of a genetics advisory committee and in accordance with the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics. The advisory committee shall be appointed by the Executive Director of the State Department of Health, and shall include at least two (2) pediatricians and one (1) consumer representative from a family that has experience with a newborn infant with an abnormal screening test. The State Department of Health shall maintain a list of each of the conditions included in the comprehensive newborn screening program, which shall be made available to physicians and other health care providers who are required to provide for newborn screening testing under Section 41-21-203.

(3) The State Department of Health shall develop information materials about newborn screening tests that are available, which may be used by physicians and other health care providers to inform pregnant women and parents. The State Board of Health shall make this information available on the Internet and shall distribute information regarding the availability of newborn screening information on the Internet to (a) all physicians in this state that have a primary responsibility for ordering screening tests to be performed, and (b) all health care facilities that provide care for infants thirty (30) days or less of age, and each physician and health care facility shall inform the infant's parent or guardian of the availability of such newborn screening tests.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2015.